Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Morocco's New Second Language - English - Gains Ground

During a recent speech, Rachid Belmokhtar, the Moroccan Minister of Education and Vocational Training, declared that the Ministry has taken serious procedures to expand and improve the use of the English language among students in the Kingdom

Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Rachid Belmokhtar

The critical success of the expansion and improvement of the use of the English language in the country is indisputable as Morocco has recently ranked first in the MENA region for English proficiency. Education First, a world leader in international education ranked Morocco as the top MENA country with the best English proficiency and 44th in the world. The ranking sorts out countries in zones according to their mastery of English skills, ranging from very high to very low.

The index also indicated that Moroccan women are more proficient in English (52.52 percent) than their male counterparts (48.06 percent).

This ranking confirms Moroccans’ improvement in English proficiency. Another ranking published by the same index showed that Morocco has recorded the second highest rate of improvement in English proficiency worldwide.

This improvement was achieved due to the widespread use of the Internet, which 56.8 percent of Moroccans have access to, according to 2013 World Bank statistics. Moroccans are quickly becoming more aware of the importance of English in giving access to better job opportunities.

Writing for Morocco World News, Soumaya El Filali reports that Minister Belmokhtar stated that in response and accordance with the reform project called for by King Mohammed VI, the Ministry of Education had adopted new approaches and methods to expand the teaching of the country’s newly adopted second foreign language.

“We’ve tried to encourage the creation of English clubs in all high-schools to encourage students to be able to speak it,” Belmokhtar said, adding that this step has achieved great success, as reflected by the students’ performance in the language.

The growth of the English language cannot be attributed to the Ministry’s initiatives alone, as Moroccans themselves have shown great interest in learning what is now considered most influential language in the world, knowing that it can open doors to new experiences and better job opportunities.

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